It's the Truth, I Swear
by MaryChristmas
Summary: Watson and Beth Lestrade meet some interesting characters while on a short case...
1. 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century or Star Wars**

**Summary: Watson and Beth Lestrade meet up with some interesting characters...**

**It's the Truth, I Swear**

Sherlock Holmes stepped into his rooms at Baker Street with a satisfied smile on his face. The next time perhaps the authorities would listen better to an "amateur PI who doesn't have enough sense to get out of the rain." The smile soon faded however as he noted a bruised and battered -- not to mention fuming -- Lestrade, as well as an equally battered Watson. His mind quickly tried to assimilate this scene and to come up with a reasonable explanation.

From the burnmarks on all their clothing, and the way they were positioned they must have been involved in a crash. This certainly went along well with the bruises -- and the fuming. His smile returned -- even more of a smirk than before. "I see Lestrade's driving has not improved in my absence," he quipped.

This only elicited a short growl from Lestrade -- which sounded remarkably like a cornered wild animal -- and a heavy sigh from the compudroid.

"You could say that, Holmes...though that's hardly the only reason for our appearance," Watson said in a weary-sounding voice.

Holmes' left eyebrow went up. "Oh? And what, pray tell, happened, then?"

"It's a long story, Holmes," Lestrade growled, "And you probably won't believe us."

"I am in need of a story," he said, his smirk growing. "Besides, is it not up to me what I will or will not believe?

"Hmm?"

"He is right, Lestrade," Watson pacified, sensing a battle as Lestrade stiffened on the sofa beside him, "Very Holmes, here is what happened..."

Ignoring the intermittent interruptions by the annoying News On Demand weather reports of "more snow expected, bundle up out there -- it's going to get chilly", the level seven law enforcement compudroid continued his rapid typing. Several new adventures (Holmes would have shuddered to hear them spoken of as such) needed to be uploaded into the database and corrected.

"As if it isn't already 'chilly'," he murmured cheerfully. Generally an easy-going sort of person, he didn't let much affect him, and continued his work. It was a bit odd without Holmes around -- not to mention silent, though that last would change once the Irregulars dropped by for their regular afternoon tea.

However, it changed much sooner than that, as Lestrade burst through the door, her breathing heavy and her eyes flashing with excitement. Watson looked over at her in surprise, wondering what on earth she could be doing there. "Holmes is not here," he said, stating the obvious, "I had thought you already knew that, Inspector."

Lestrade shook her head. "I need someone as a witness -- just in case this character I'm after gets her family involved. Lousy politicians. They think money and connections fix everything," she huffed. "And you know what's funny? It does." She abruptly changed the subject. "Anyway, do you mind? Someone other than a Yardie would be more believable."

Watson didn't need convincing. He missed Holmes' presence more than he'd realized -- or perhaps it was just human companionship. In any case, it would be just like old times -- he and the inspector paired up to stop some crime. Though this time he wouldn't be reporting every action and word back to the Yard. An uncontrollable blush rose in his cheeks, making Lestrade give him an odd look. Quickly telling her that it was nothing, he walked towards the door, not waiting for her to follow.

A short time later, they were speeding along at a neck-breaking pace through the hazardous skies of New London, chasing after the culprit who had panicked at the simple sight of the Yard Cruiser.

Watson, used to the Inspector's driving by now, focused on keeping the hovercraft in sight. However, his vigilance wasn't quite enough, as the vehicle swerved to the right just as Lestrade was going to the left. In an attempt to correct her mistake and follow, she turned abruptly.

That was when Watson's sensors went offline.


	2. 2

"So there was a crash," Holmes stated, "as I said before."

Lestrade gave him an annoyed look. "Not exactly. The crash didn't happen until _after_ Watson's sensors went dead. Because whatever made that happen took out the controls on my cruiser so that I had no flying ability whatsoever -- and not only that..."

A sudden darkness filled Lestrade's vision as she desperately worked to bring the craft back under control. The computer refused to respond, and she couldn't put it on manual -- though she was certain that wouldn't work either. Then, a few minutes later, the shadows lifted and she could see again. The familiar skyscape of buildings filled her vision. If they were a bit odd-looking, well, that was just recent events -- and the strain of still being unable to maneuver the cruiser.

"Watson, could you give me a hand here?" she growled out between clenched teeth. "Watson?" she prompted when the compudroid didn't respond. A quick glance in his direction told her her vehicle wasn't the only thing having technical difficulties. "Wonderful...she is going to pay for this and pay dearly. I don't care whose daughter she is."

Too late she saw the highrise rushing at great speed towards her, and too late she noticed that it was quite a bit higher than anything she had seen before. In fact, there was more traffic around than was normal. A bonejarring -- or cracking, if she hadn't been strapped in -- crash thrilled through her body. The sound of metal scraping on metal made her wince.

The cruiser, having been slowed considerably, came to a complete stop in the middle of some sort of large office -- a very large office. A door on the opposite side of the room from where the craft rested opened and a group of armed, uniformed men ran inside, training their weapons on them. Then, right behind them came a tall man with a kindly face dressed in long, flowing black robes, and another man, portly, dressed in gaudy-colored robes -- though she had to admit they certainly matched his blue skin and head-tails.

"What the..." She blinked and rubbed at her eyes, then looked again. They were still there.

"Aliens? Now there's an original story for you," Holmes said dryly.

Lestrade folded her arms across her chest and glared. "You said you wanted a story -- and that it was up to you whether you would believe it or not. So shouldn't you wait to hear the whole thing before you pass judgement? Hmm?"

"Yes," Watson agreed, "Anyway, Lestrade found a way to reactivate me and asked me to tell her what I saw..."

His sensors reactivated, Watson looked out at the scene Lestrade was asking him to verify. He took in the armed men. "We've handled better odds, Inspector. Surely..."

"No, look at _everything_, Watson," she insisted.

He scanned the rest of the room. There was a man who looked quite a bit like a barrister, in long black robes, and another man with blue skin and some sort of things hanging off his head, a woman with a high, conical forehead and...

"You see what I see?" Lestrade asked softly, "It's not just me?"

"I believe I know what you mean, Inspector. Now what are we to do about it?"

"Come out of there, with your hands raised in a non-threatening manner!" one of the uniformed men shouted -- most likely an officer. Then the man in black whispered something to him. The officer shook his head vehemently, then heaved a visible sigh, and with a wave of his hand, the armed men retreated.

The black-robed man walked forward with a smile on his face, and stopped before the door on Lestrade's side of the hovercraft. After a pause the door opened.

"As I thought, you aren't from around here, are you?" the man asked.

"No," Lestrade answered quickly, "we're from...Tatooine. Visiting...um, the capitol..."

The man laughed good-naturedly, though Watson could detect an undercurrent of malice. "Now, now, my dear. You don't really expect me to believe that, do you?"

Lestrade stiffened, and then she plastered a smile similar to the man's on her face. "No, I don't really expect you to. All right, here's the real explanation, Chancellor...I was sent by someone who you don't know to assassinate a certain...problem within the Senate..."

The man's expression cleared instantly and a more genuine smile crossed his lips. Watson had absolutely no clue what Lestrade was doing, but he deemed it best to play along -- especially as whatever it was appeared to be getting results.


	3. 3

Several hours later -- it was night, judging from the stars he could see out of the window and the city lights that hadn't been visible earlier -- Watson watched as Lestrade paced about the spacious rooms they had been given, as though searching for something. Cleaned and treated for the minor wounds she had received in the crash, she was dressed in a simple white tunic, belted at the waist, over light brown trousers. His own elasto-mask, bowler hat and cape had been taken also, leaving him looking like a simple 'droid.

Finally she sat down on the large sofa that was the most prominent piece of furniture in the room, and gave a sigh of defeat. "I guess he didn't believe me after all," she stated with a shake of her head, "I can't find my ionizer -- or my badge. But if he didn't believe me, then why the elaborate pretense of making us think he did?"

Watson couldn't answer that question, though he did have one of his own. "Lestrade, how did you know who he was? Or what the planet...Tatooine, I believe you said...was? Or that this was the capital of the Republic?"

Okay, so it was more than one, but they were all related and one response would serve to answer them all.

Lestrade looked at him, amusement evident in her expression and tone as she answered, "From a movie."

"A movie?" This of course only confused him further.

"Yeah, a movie...six, actually...no, wait, let me finish. In the twentieth century a man named George Lucas came up with a trilogy and storyline that was an instant hit. At the beginning of the twenty-first century he put out the prequels -- three movies that showed what happened before the events of the original trilogy. Anyway, we are in the universe of those movies...and that man...is a very bad person. He uses the Dark Side of the...Of course! That's it! He must have known...but that still doesn't explain...Come on, Watson, we've got to get out of here."

Watson stared in puzzlement as Lestrade walked over to a large circular window and opened it. "What are you talking about, Lestrade? I really..." He stopped as she opened his chest compartment and pulled out the spare ionizer and his lariat. "Lestrade..."

"Listen, Watson, there's no time to talk. I'll try to explain everything once we're out of this room."

Without waiting for a response, she moved back over to the window and climbed out and out of sight.

Seconds later he saw the lariat flying through the air and catching on something out of his field of vision. He slowly followed Lestrade's path to the window and looked down. She was standing on a ledge just below the window, the wind whipping her hair about her face, attaching the end of the rope she was holding to some sort of antenna. The other end was latched on to a similar structure on a building close by. He carefully lowered himself out of the window, and closed it behind him.

"Lestrade," he warned, her plan becoming apparent, "I do not think..."

Obviously ignoring him, she pulled herself up onto the taut rope and slowly stood up, balancing precariously with the natural wind and that created by vehicles speeding past, over and under the makeshift bridge. The drivers of said craft were of all sorts of species, though they all had the universal language of annoyance.

"Watson," Lestrade said through clenched teeth, "I'm going across. You wait here. When I'm across, you untie it and swing down to the next level. Then I'll pull you up." As she spoke, she was walking, with slow measured steps.

"Oh, very well, Lestrade, but surely there is an easier way..." His words were lost on the inspector, as she was now too far away. Watson watched with -- metaphorically speaking -- his breath held, as several times she lost her balance and nearly fell. Each time, however, she caught and righted herself, making him think back to when the nanites had been in control of her brain. She had shown an uncanny deal of luck then too.

Finally, she was on the other ledge and it was his turn. He untied the rope on his end and held it in both hands.

Wishing he could shut his sensors off, he jumped off the ledge and plummeted downwards like a stone. Then he was jerked as the slack played out and he swung towards the ledge just under Lestrade. His relief was palpable as his feet touched solid ground.

Lestrade soon joined him, having slipped over the edge of the ledge above, carrying the rope with her. "I decided it would be better to go down a bit. Besides..." she showed him where the rope had frayed almost to the breaking point and smiled.

"Oh, my."

Holmes couldn't help but chuckle as a clear mental picture of the two in that last scene entered his thought. He no longer doubted that they were telling the truth, though he was curious as to what Lestrade had been thinking. Usually she blurted her theories out, whether she knew all the facts or not; he supposed it was her way of brainstorming.

"'Oh my' is right, Watson. Lestrade, I didn't know you had once been in the circus."

Lestrade looked up at him in shock. "Ho...never mind. Watson, get on with it."

"Hmm? Oh, right. As I was saying, Lestrade had just finished showing me what a close call I had had, when..."

"Really, Lestrade," Watson said severely, "You should know better than to..." he broke off as Lestrade's mouth opened in astonishment. He turned to see what she was gaping at, and had he still had his elasto-mask he would have been gaping as well.

A small, round, probe-like object was flying through the air with a man, wearing off-white clothing similar to that used in fighting dojos, hanging on for dear life. It disintegrated as it passed near the ledge they were on, and the man fell. Watson, who was still wondering what was going, was astonished to see the lasso loop around the man's waist and stop his descent. The robot looked over at Lestrade who was busy pulling the poor man up to where they were at.

When he was standing next to them, Watson took the time to study the man at a closer range. His face sported a beard, and on his belt hung a long metal cylinder. Other than that, he had no distinguishing features. Lestrade, however, appeared to know him as she had the other -- Palpatine. Only she seemed more happy to see this one.

"Are you all right, Master Kenobi?" she questioned.

Kenobi looked at her, at the ledge, and at Watson, then gave her an odd, puzzled smile. "Yes...and you are?"

"I'm..." Lestrade didn't get the chance to finish as a vehicle pulled up, with a young man sitting inside wearing similar garments to the man's. He didn't give the other two a second glance as he gazed at Kenobi. "Come on, Master, he's getting away."

Kenobi gave Lestrade another look, and then jumped into the two-seater, which took off shortly after.

"Well, that was interesting. Another person from the movies you were speaking of?"

Lestrade nodded, seeming subdued. "Yeah...and now I know what the time frame is." She heaved a sigh. "Anyway, it's a good idea we decided to stay on the bottom one...if we had done as originally planned they might have mistaken us for the perpetrators. They still might, if Palpatine hears of this..."


	4. 4

Strolling through the darkened corridors of the building, another question occured to Watson. "Excuse me, Lestrade, but perpetrators of what crime? And how would our being up there have implicated us?"

Lestrade was silent a moment, concentrating as she was on not bumping into anything. "Well," she said finally, "We would have been accused of being in league with the person who sent out that probe. She must have been up on that ledge where I couldn't see her...but she must have been there. If we had stayed up there, well you can see how it would look...And we could still be accused, you know, if Obi-wan or Anakin says anything."

"Obi-wan? Anakin?"

An annoyed grumble accompanied her response, "Obi-wan was that guy who I lassoed, the kid was Anakin."

"I see, and Lestrade, there is no reason to get uppity. I have never seen these movies of yours." Watson allowed a note of long- suffering to enter his voice, and Lestrade placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I know, Watson," she said, "It's just that...I don't know what to do. I know where we are, but not how we got here. I don't even know if my knowledge is even going to do us any good." She paused in her stride and looked down yet another dark hallway opening just to their left.

Watson stopped as well. "Then, we are simply walking with no destination in mind?"

"Pretty much."

Watson pondered this for a moment. "Perhaps our first stop should be to find the cruiser; it may have clues as to how we landed in this predicament. That is, of course, if Palpatine has not destroyed it."

"Right," Lestrade agreed, "So let's..." The sound of heavy foot- fall approaching rapidly interrupted and she grabbed his arm. "You go down this corridor here and see if it leads anywhere," she commanded, gesturing towards the hallway, "Get out if you can, and don't worry about me. We'll rendezvous at...um..well, listen, let's just hope our wrist coms work, because otherwise we are in big trouble."

"You have your wrist com?"

He could almost see the smirk played out on her face. "Yeah, I managed to hide it before anyone got a good look at it, and yours is built in. Anyway, you have a better chance of escaping than me since you're a 'droid. People here often ignore them unless said 'droid is shooting at them. Just...pretend you're on maintenance or something..."

Whoever was after them was getting closer, and Lestrade didn't wait for a response, pushing him down the hallway and running off down the direction she had been going.

"Splitting up?" Holmes interrupted once again, "While I admit it is certainly a good way of confusing the pursuers, it is an entirely stupid plan when you are in a place that is unfamiliar." He held up his hand to forestall Lestrade's inevitable protest. "That is, unfamiliar to one of the parties involved, and with a way of communicating that is dubious at best."

"So I wasn't exactly thinking about that," Lestrade defended, "I wasn't exactly thinking about much except that I needed to get out of there as fast as I could, and that Watson might be able to do some good if he escaped..."

On and on she ran, her feet pounding along the carpeted -- at least that's what she assumed it was -- floor. Her pursuers were gaining ground -- good for Watson (hopefully) -- but bad news for her. Especially with what appeared to be a dead end looming menacingly before her. However, as she neared, she was relieved to find that it was a turbo-lift. Upon reaching the door, she frantically palmed the button and bounced on the balls of her feet, impatient for it to hurry up.

Again, things didn't turn out exactly as she had expected. The doors opened all right, but there was a person standing inside, wearing a dark, hooded cloak that covered most of his features. She knew who it was instantly, and felt dismay rise within her, even as she turned around to run the other way. A soft, deadly chuckle filled her ears, and made her shudder involuntarily.

Without warning, the ceiling just in front of her collapsed, and she stopped before it fell on her. Unable to go anywhere else, she turned around to face the dark visage of the most diabolical man this galaxy had ever known. She planted her feet firmly, crossed her arms and lifted her chin in defiance. There was no way she was going to let this man unnerve her -- any more than he had already, anyway.

"Spirited, I see," a cold, raspy voice whispered, "Excellent. I should turn you in as the bounty hunter the Jedi are looking for -- yes, that hit a nerve. Just as I expected. Don't worry, though, if you join me, I can train you, help you to understand yourself. And in return, all you have to do is give me your unwavering obedience. It's not very much to ask...now, is it?"


	5. 5

Lestrade simply stood there, glowering at the figure in front of her. She had no idea what he meant by 'training' her, but she assumed it had something to do with her statement about being an assassin. Whatever it was, she certainly wasn't going to let him intimidate her into doing anything she didn't expressly want to do -- for that matter, anything at all, coming from him.

"And if I refuse?" she asked haughtily, trying to buy some time as she debated darting past him and into the now empty lift.

Again, the dry chuckle. "Then you will die -- for the attempted murder of Senator Amidala. So you see, whether you are willing or not, you will still be doing me a great service."

"How," she asked, keeping her eyes locked on the general vicinity of his eyes, "would my being implicated in that serve you?"

She kept her eyes hardened, but forced herself to show signs of weakening resolve, just enough to let him know he was getting to her. ...Just a few seconds longer...and something to distract him...

"A pity. You seem to know a great deal about me, and yet you do not understand my plans. I ask you once more, and I will not ask again: Will you join me?"

Right at that moment, as if responding to her wish, the guardsmen who had been tracking her began to try and scramble through the rubble. It wasn't much, but it distracted Palpatine long enough for her to scamper past him and climb up onto the top of the lift. Without waiting for thought to catch up to her, she began shimmying up the sides of the lift.

Watson stared out over the various ships docked on the platform he was standing on, next to a battle scarred freighter (though he wouldn't know that's what it was til later) and debated whether or not to try and board one. On the one hand, he didn't know where they were headed, and he didn't want to lose Lestrade. On the other, if he stayed here, it would be easier for whoever was after them to catch up to him.

"Hey, you!"

Watson started at the sound of a voice behind him. A gruff-looking individual wearing grimy clothing reminiscent of what heroes wore in all those old westerns was walking towards him. "What are you doing just loitering around here? Aincha got work ta do?"

"I...well I suppose that I..." Watson was at a loss for words. Suppose he said something that would alert the man to the fact that he wasn't from around here? Or that he wasn't just an ordinary 'droid? Or suppose the man was actually working for Palpatine...

"Oh, a protocol 'droid, eh? Wonderful..." A crafty expression crossed the man's face. "No restrainer bolt...no identifying marks..why I'd say finders keepers. Come on you, the Hutts are always willing to pay for good protocol 'droids. How many languages you speak?"

"Well...I haven't been programmed in languages...so to speak..." Watson said, hoping that that would be the end of it and the con (for that's what Watson labeled him as) would simply leave him be.

"That's okay, languages are easily programmed...by the right people...and I just happen to know some of the 'right people'." The con let out a cackling laugh. "Now come on, get on aboard."

Watson, about to refuse, saw several uniformed men climbing out of a shaft of some sort, and quickly climbed aboard the freighter. Lestrade would be all right. She had managed to get herself out of similar situations before, and he had no doubt of her ability now. Still, as the freighter took off, he couldn't help but worry about her.

Several hours later, the con who had taken the ship into what he had called 'hyper-speed' was sitting across from Watson at an odd chess board.

"Okay, 'droid, what's your designation? I know your type gets uppity if we call you anything else. 'sides, I like to know the names of my passengers."

Watson regarded the con with what should have been a haughty glare. "My name, sir, is Watson."

"Watson? What kind of...well, what's your make and model?" The con sounded quite exasperated and put-out. Well, too bad for him.

"I am not at liberty to release that information," he informed loftily.

"Fine, Watson," the con sneered, "I'm Jack Sayn, by the way. Not that it makes any difference. You call me Captain Sayn."

"Hmph. What is our destination anyway?"

A smirk crossed the thin lips. "Tatooine. Like I said. I gotta friend there who'll program you, and then I can sell you to the highest bidder."

"Seems rather mercenary, don't you think?"

"Yeah, well, when you live life out on the fast lane, you don't have time to think about things like that."

Watson would have smirked if he could have. "Sounds like the philosophy of a friend of mine."


	6. 6

"Perfect," Lestrade muttered as she ducked behind a pillar inside the building she'd crawled into, as a group of robed individuals both young and old walked by. Of all the many thousands (possibly millions) of places on the planet, the Jedi Temple would be the first one she came to.

After the group had passed, she hesitantly walked out. At least Palpy had been good enough to give her something that would help her blend in. Surely the Temple had visitors, considering that their Archives were some of the most extensive in the galaxy. And, even if she were in the wrong part she could always say she was lost, which was the complete truth.

Still, she kept her guard up. What if Palpatine had anticipated her escaping, and had planned on her coming here? In the movies he had seemed to be two or three steps ahead of the Jedi, no matter what happened. In a way though, she was a few steps ahead herself, considering the movies.

So caught up in her thoughts as she was, she didn't notice the trio of beings walking up behind her until she felt a hand on her shoulder. Instantly on the defensive, she whirled around, crouching slightly with her hands up. And nearly fell backwards in surprise.

Yoda, Mace Windu and Kenobi were all standing there, right in front of her. Quickly composing herself she straightened up. This was almost as exciting as when she had first seen Holmes open his eyes.

Then she realized that these three had probably been sent by Palpatine who knew she was going to come here and...

"I never did get your name," Kenobi said softly, a trace of amusement lacing his voice, "And I would consider it bad manners to not be able to thank the one who saved my life. Where is your droid?"

"Oh...uh...my name's Beth...and Watson's..." She stopped and shook her head, a great idea having just come to her. She desperately hoped it would work considering the other two were measuring her up. "I'm not from this galaxy...I don't even think I'm from this universe...no, wait...Watson -- who isn't just a droid -- and I were chasing a criminal when we got stuck in Chancellor Palpatine's office. I told Palpatine that I was here to assassinate someone, and he got this weird smile on his face..."

"How do you know us if you're not from here?" Windu asked, suspicion clearly written on his smooth features.

_Here I go again_, she thought. "Where I come from there are these movies that were really popular. They were all about this universe. I can prove it." She turned to Obi-wan. "You just came back from finding out that a bounty hunter has been hired to kill Senator Amidala. And now Anakin has been sent to Naboo and you're about to go find out what you can about that um...dart thing."

The expressions on their faces were priceless.


	7. 7

So far as Watson could tell, Sayn wasn't too bad a guy -- for a space pirate. In fact, the con was downright friendly, though Watson suspected that had to do with the fact that quite a few credits were involved. Still, it was better listening to his old 'war stories' than to Lestrade's growling every five seconds.

"So," Sayn laughed, "when Reece found out that it was me who was on his tail, he nearly had a heart-attack. And nearly killed me," he added as almost an afterthought, pointing at a scar on his neck.

"I can imagine his unhappiness with the situation," Watson responded. "Certainly no one enjoys practical jokes that can cause harm to another."

Sayn shrugged. "It's not fun then." He leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin. "Hm...we should be almost there...you know, I kinda like you. I mean, you're stiff and all that, but a good 'droid all the same. And..I kinda need a...copilot. Yeah, yeah!"

Sayn sat up abruptly, his dark green eyes sparkling. "You can learn how to pilot this freighter can't you? Good.

Me and you can travel the length of the galaxy together. And once I've got you programmed with the necessary languages well...there won't be all the problems of misunderstandings that I come by in my line of work."

"Misunderstandings?" Watson asked, not at all sure he wanted to know.

"Oh you know, this is off-limits, I'm gonna kill you...those sorts of things. I wouldn't go into those off-limits areas if I knew I wasn't supposed to. I mean, really."

"Surely they have those things posted somewhere in common or another tongue." Watson had gleaned a few terms from the freighters computer. These were more...sentient seeming that the mainframes back home.

"Uh...well, uh...hey, I gotta check the readings. You just, um, sit back and relax here." Captain Sayn jumped up with alacrity, leaving Watson shaking his head. Once a con, always a con, he supposed.

Turning his head so that he could see inside the cockpit and out at the passing pinpoints of starlight, he wondered if Lestrade was okay. He could of course simply call her on the comm...but what if their persuers had it, and had a way of tracking the signal? No, he would simply have to wait for her to contact him. And hope that he survived his encounter with Captain Jack Sayn.

------

Lestrade continued to stand at attention as she waited for the three Jedi to finish talking amongst themselves, and fought not to snap at them to hurry up. It was insulting to be talked about as though she weren't even there, and she wasn't one to take insults lightly. However, these were extenuating circumstances. Nobody in their right mind challenged somebody who could toss you aside with just a thought.

Finally they finished and walked back over to her.

"Decided we have," Yoda said, his face serious, "that go with Master Kenobi you will."

"There is something wrong in the Force...a blankness, as it were," Windu added, "And therefore the only thing we know about you is that you are not with the Dark Side."

Lestrade snorted, "Yeah well, that's no big thing, I mean look at Palpatine." She abruptly bit her lip. She hadn't been going to say anything about that...at least not until Palpy gave her no other choice.

All three masters' eyes narrowed at this.

"What do you mean?" Windu asked.

"Yes, Chancellor Palpatine may be an politician," Kenobi agreed, "But he's no Sith."

Yoda simply gazed at her.

She rolled her eyes. "Look, why else would the Trade Federation have picked Naboo? It isn't even a major trade world. And, why, directly after that, did Palpatine suddenly get 'elected' as Supreme Chancellor?

"The truth you speak," Yoda said quietly, "But circumstantial is the evidence. Review all the facts you must, before coming to a conclusion you can." The small master gave a decided nod.

Lestrade gave a small groan. "All right, it was in the movies I was telling you about, which...anyway, it doesn't matter. You'd really like Sherlock Holmes, you know. Now, do you still want me to go with Master Keno


	8. 8

Holmes quickly stopped Lestrade at this part of the narrative. Everything else so far had seemed to add up. However.

"These three men seem to be very wise," he said carefully, "And yet they immediately trust your word without having known you for long? Surely there were other means that you could have received that information."

Lestrade rolled her eyes. "Holmes, these three guys use something called the Force. They knew I was telling the whole truth."

"Extrasensory perception? Now, Lestrade..."

"Now, Holmes..." she said, mimicking him exactly. He hated it when she did that. "Look, just because you've never come across something like that doesn't mean it doesn't exist."

"Quite right, Holmes," Watson intervened, sensing a battle. "I saw it myself, with my very own eyes...er sensors. But not until much later in the story. Now, where was I? Oh, yes..."

"Tatooine," Sayn said as Watson came into the cockpit. Outside the viewport, the pinpoints of light had been replaced by the glow of three burning suns...no, wait...the middle one was a planet.

"How odd," he remarked to the captain.

Sayn smiled. "Yeah, it's amazing, isn't it? Early explorers once thought it was a third sun caught in the binary...but when a group of scientists crashlanded there, it was realized that it was actually a planet...completely covered in sand...no natural lakes or rivers...but a planet, nonetheless. It's the best sort of place for our kind. Remote, barren, has the best cantinas...Sit back and strap yourself in while I land."

Watson complied and stared at the blinding visage of the desert planet. It was incredible. And people really lived there? Of course, humans had been living in deserts on earth for millennia, so it wasn't too great a stretch of the imagination.

"I do hope you are better at landing than takeoff," he remarked, simply feeling the need for conversation.

"Very funny," Sayn said dryly, "Now, when I tell you to, I want you to pull the green lever that's over your head -- no, not that one...yeah, that one...okay...now!"

Watson pulled the lever and he could feel the change in the ship as thrusters were turned on. It began its slow descent into the atmosphere below.

Several hours later, Watson waited outside of a cantina as Sayn was doing something. He hadn't quite caught what the man had been saying as he disappeared inside. And really, the way they treated robots. It was almost as bad as the anti-techs back home. Almost...at least they realized they had some good uses here.

After only a few minutes, Sayn walked out his expression stormy. "Come on, Watson, we're going to join a raid on the Tuskens."

"I beg your pardon?"

Sayn grinned. "There's a reward if we get this lady who was kidnapped back to safety. Should be a piece of cake." He shook his head in disgust. "Most of the rescue party is comprised of moisture farmers who only have outdated weaponry and have no idea how to work in an organized search and rescue operation."

Watson looked over at him intently...well, he considered it intently anyway. "And you do?"

"Yes. I was once part of Coruscant's special guardsmen." He gave a short, flat laugh. "Until Palpatine got elected as Supreme Chancellor. He got rid of everybody. Said that he was afraid our loyalty would be to the former Chancellor. Ha! Our loyalty is to the Republic...and its people."

"Then you aren't really a pirate...are you? You're a spy."

Sayn looked over at him in surprise. "Well, you really aren't an ordinary 'droid, are you?" He looked around, but the different beings milling about seemed to be paying them no attention, so he continued. "Yes. A few senators hired me and some other men who are unhappy with the present situation to keep an eye on Palpatine and his closest advisors." Sayn grinned again. "Anyway, for ten years I've been building up a case to present to the Senate. And I've almost got it completed."

Watson nodded. "I see. Well, Captain Sayn, what does going after this woman have to do with what you are doing?"

"Nothing...all right. I found out that a man of Palpatine's was here right before the raid...he's the one who egged the Tuskens on. The woman they got is the mother of a young Jedi padawan...one of the most powerful yet. Or so I've heard. I don't know what Palpatine's plan is, but it can't be good. So I'm going to try and stop it."


End file.
